When McGraw-Hill textbooks asked us to create a dynamic, user-friendly online application to enhance their competitive edge in the field of education, we jumped at the opportunity. McGraw-Hill provided dynamic content while Sealworks brought its own creative clout and developer instincts and the synergy resulted in Connect English.

Sealworks and McGraw-Hill have been partners in creating unique and exciting digital programs for over a decade. Connect English allows both Instructor and Student to experience learning and educating in a brand new way. Instructor tools and student content leads to a cohesive and fun online classroom.

McGraw-Hill requested that we create a product that is not only a textbook companion, but also an entire classroom environment. They needed a new platform that specifically contained student progress tracking tools, an interactive e-book, and a product that customers could grow with after the semester is over. They wanted their customers - instructional faculty - to see this product as an indispensible teaching tool. Sealworks took it a step further.

Not only does Connect English help instructors monitor student progress and diagnose their specific skill set, it aids institutional administrators in keeping instructors and classes consistent and provides an overall sense of how students respond to their classes and instructors. Connect English has truly proven to be an indispensible analytic tool at the administrative level.

So how did Sealworks bring this vision into fruition?

Let's start with the student's experience. First, the wealth and variety of content and tools available at the student's fingertips: quizzes, full e-book, author videos, lessons, animations, interactive activities, notebook, message center, and searchable content. Sealworks organized and, in most cases, built unique and engaging content for students. Our team of animators created entertaining and informative animations that made black and white lessons come alive. Imagine a freshman in college reads a John Updike story for the first time and is moved immensely. The freshman wishes he or she could ask the author a million questions about his craft or story, or at least meet the author behind the work. Well, now that freshman has the chance! In Connect Literature, there are hundreds of hours of author interviews to enhance anyone's experience of fiction and poetry. This immense amount of subject matter is easily navigated through Sealworks-designed interface that includes simple tabs and sub-menus.

The instructor's experience of Connect English is just as easily navigable. Some tools that are at the disposal of the instructor are: assignable quizzes and practice work outs, full e-book content, gradebook, notebook, message center, customizable e-book content, diagnostic skills test, custom writing, blog and discussion board assignments, and written feedback of student work. The Sealworks-built Peer Review custom writing assignments allow the benefits of small-group feedback without necessarily being in a classroom setting. A reviewer can now comment on a classmate's paper from his or her home computer - and instructors can check these comments from anywhere without ever having touched a paper hard-copy draft.

The administrator's role is integral in keeping classes consistent and overseeing individual progress. With tools like learning outcomes, progress reports, and course creation, this user role in Connect English allows administrators to answer the essential questions of class effectiveness and student performance. This user can create a course for a team of instructors that are teaching the same class. Creating a virtual course that includes specific recommended assignments, learning outcomes, and editable content for all instructors to use, allows for overall class consistency.

As you have already read, Connect English is an intricate platform that took a team of dedicated developers, programmers, designers, animators, writers, and managers. This team worked in close partnership with McGraw-Hill to bring this vision to life. The participation of our clients makes for a stunning end result that every one finds dazzling.

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